Yesterday, I spoke in the debate on the second reading of the Victims and Courts Bill, sharing stories shared with me in recent weeks by three constituents. Before you continue reading, please be aware that this post contains discussion of rape, sexual violence and other violent crime.
One of the hardest parts about being an MP is hearing about the horrific things that people go through in their lives at the hands of others. One of the best parts, conversely, is having the platform to do something about it. There were many powerful speakers in this debate, and I would like to highlight incredible contributions from my incredible colleagues, Anneliese Midgley, Natalie Fleet and Marie Tidball. Here is the transcript of the speech I made yesterday in support of the Victims and Courts Bill.
Adam Thompson
Every day, we Members hear from our constituents that victims of crime have been sidelined, and left to navigate a system that often feels indifferent to their suffering. My decision about what to raise in today’s debate stems from a conversation I had in my constituency surgery a few weeks ago with a constituent who has asked to remain anonymous.
My constituent told me of an abusive relationship that she was in, which resulted in the birth of a child. My constituent ended up in court in a custody battle over her child. In the trial, she was accused of refusing the father contact. She told me how that horrific experience made her feel. She felt that the court system was used as a form of abuse by her former partner. Her claim against him was dismissed as being her word against his, and she asked me to look again at parental rights in the context of abusive relationships. I also heard about a constituent—who, again, asked to remain anonymous—who had been beaten by their partner, who then gained full custody of their child. These are just two of hundreds of similar stories that I have heard, thousands of similar stories that my constituents could tell, and millions of similar stories that women and girls—and, indeed, men and boys—around the country could communicate to us.
We are looking again at these laws today. Under the Bill, courts will be used to empower victims, alleged perpetrators will be required to attend court hearings, the victim contact scheme will help victims to navigate the legal system and will have a dedicated helpline, and automatic parental rights will be restricted in cases of child sexual abuse, exactly as they should be.
The Bill also includes measures to address antisocial behaviour, a subject on which I have received lots of representations from constituents, as I am sure colleagues from across the House will have done. At my constituency surgery on Saturday morning, an individual talked me through the horrific death threats that he had been receiving daily from his neighbour, who spent hours a day screaming through the walls of their semi-detached home at my constituent and his family. This behaviour left my constituent afraid to leave his home. Under current regulations, ultimately nothing was done, and this behaviour began to let up only when the neighbour decided to move away of their own volition. That is not good enough.
When the system fails, it is the victims who suffer first and who suffer the most. They deserve better, and this Bill is a critical part of that better future. Today, let us send a message that the days of delay, denial and degradation are over, and that from now on, our justice system will put victims first.
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